In 2011, the European Commission first proposed a common consolidated corporate tax base (CCCTB). The idea was to calculate taxable profits in the same way for all businesses across the EU. Twice in five years, the proposal stalled in the face of opposition by a minority of countries including Ireland. (As the name suggests, the plan was to harmonise the tax base, not its rate. To get this out of the way first – Ireland’s 12.5 per cent was never really questioned, with other EU leaders happy to let successive Irish ministers trumpet back home that they regularly save this…

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